Chemically-induced epimutagenesis allows bypassing reproductive barriers in hybrid seeds [RNA-seq]
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ABSTRACT: The "triploid block" prevents interploidy hybridizations in flowering plants, and is characterized by failure in endosperm development and function, arrest in embryogenesis, and seed collapse. Many genetic components of triploid seed lethality have been successfully identified in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, most notably the paternally expressed imprinted genes (PEGs) that are up-regulated in the tetraploid endosperm with paternal excess. Previous studies have shown that the paternal epigenome is a key determinant of the triploid block response, as the loss of DNA methylation in diploid pollen suppresses the triploid block almost completely. Here, we demonstrate that triploid seed abortion is bypassed in plants treated with the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5-Azacytidine during seed germination and early plant growth. We have identified strong suppressor lines showing transgenerational inheritance of hypomethylation in CG context, as well as normalized expression of PEGs. Importantly, differentially methylated loci segregate in the progeny of "epimutagenized" plants, which may allow the identification of epialleles involved in the triploid block response in future studies. Finally, we demonstrate that chemically-induced epimutagenesis allows bypassing interploidy hybridizations in Arabidopsis and interspecific hybridization barriers in crosses between Capsella species, thus potentially emerging as a novel strategy for seed-based breeding of triploids and interspecific hybrids with agronomical interest.
ORGANISM(S): Arabidopsis thaliana
PROVIDER: GSE179697 | GEO | 2021/11/23
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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